'He and Putin Seemed to Be Speaking From the Same Script': Trump Draws Fire From Both Sides of the Aisle

President Donald Trump gave his detractors plenty of ammunition while standing beside Russian President Vladimir Putin.

At Monday's Helsinki press conference, the commander in chief refused to side with the findings of his own intelligence community that Putin's government used illegal hacking to influence the 2016 presidential election.

"President Putin was extremely strong and powerful in his denial today," Trump said of his query to Putin on Monday about the issue. "President Putin says it's not Russia. I don't see any reason why it would be."

Putin said he told Trump during their talks that "the Russian state never interfered and does not plan to interfere in the internal American electoral process."

Just days ago, Department of Justice special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation led to the indictment of 12 Russian military officers. 

After Monday's historic meeting, President Trump again appeared not to call out Putin or the Russians during an interview with Fox News.

"We get questions on the witch hunt. And I don't think the people out in the country buy it," President Trump said. "Our expectations are grounded in realism, but our hopes are grounded in America's desire for friendship, cooperation, and peace." 

Hours later, on the trip back to Washington, Trump tweeted he has "GREAT confidence in MY intelligence people." He added, "However, I also recognize that in order to build a brighter future, we cannot exclusively focus on the past."

Meanwhile, the Russian leader didn't deny a hacking took place in his first interview after the meeting.

"The idea was about hacking the email account of a Democratic candidate. Was it some rigging of facts? Was it some forgery of facts? That's the important point I'm trying to make. Was this any false information planted? No, it wasn't," said Putin.

American politicians on both sides of the aisle, as well as former US intelligence officials and diplomats, began sharply criticizing Trump's remarks, even before the president had boarded Air Force One for the flight back home.

House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) said there was "no question" Russia interfered in the election and that Moscow "is not our ally" – and he wasn't alone.

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) also condemned Trump's remarks, saying he delivered "one of the most disgraceful performances by an American president in memory."

"The damage inflicted by President Trump's naiveté, egotism, false equivalence, and sympathy for autocrats is difficult to calculate. But it is clear that the summit in Helsinki was a tragic mistake," McCain said in a statement. 

"President Trump proved not only unable but unwilling to stand up to Putin," the Arizona lawmaker charged. "He and Putin seemed to be speaking from the same script as the president made a conscious choice to defend a tyrant against the fair questions of a free press, and to grant Putin an uncontested platform to spew propaganda and lies to the world."

Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) tweeted, "I never thought I would see the day when our American president would stand on the stage with the Russian president and place blame on the United States for Russian aggression."

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) called it a "missed opportunity by President Trump to firmly hold Russia accountable."

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said, "The president took the word of the KGB rather than the brave hardworking men and women of the CIA."

Meanwhile, current and former intelligence top brass condemned President Trump's statements as well.

"We have been clear in our assessments of Russian meddling in the 2016 election and their ongoing, pervasive efforts to undermine our democracy, and we will continue to provide unvarnished and objective intelligence in support of our national security," National Intelligence Director Dan Coats said.
     
Former CIA Chief John Brennan called President Trump's actions "nothing short of treasonous."

Despite the tsunami of criticism, some – like Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) – expressed approval of Trump's handling of Russia.

"It's gotten so ridiculous that someone has to stand up and say we should try to engage even our adversaries and open up our lines of communication," Paul told Politico after the controversial press conference.

"We're going to talk to the president about some small steps in order to try to thaw the relations between our countries," the senator added, noting that he's set to travel to Russia early next month to continue the dialogue that Trump started.

Meanwhile, other big issues discussed, like Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea, didn't get much attention.

However, Syria was held up as a possible point of collaboration between the two. 

Both sides ensured they'd work together on a humanitarian basis and ensure the security for neighboring countries like Israel.